The Canadian Council for Public-Private Partnerships Annual Conference

The annual conference of the Canadian Council for Public Private Partnerships brings together global leaders responsible for delivering some of the world’s most ambitious and innovative infrastructure projects.

This year’s 26th conference—P3 2018—drew over 1,200 senior public and private infrastructure leaders from across Canada and internationally to share best practises and recognize excellent and innovation in the Public Private Partnerships.

As a global leader in the P3 model, Canada has used public-private partnerships successfully for over 20 years. In his opening remarks, Francois-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s

Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, discussed the role P3s can play in the federal government’s $180-billion Investing in Canada Plan, set to deliver key projects like transit, energy, and healthcare.

National Awards for Innovation and Excellence in P3s

A highlight of each year are the National Awards for Innovation and Excellence in P3s. This year, five infrastructure projects, located in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario, were selected for breaking new ground in how P3s are built, financed, and delivered services, as well as their impact in boosting the economy, cost saving, and creating more vibrant, inclusive communities.

Milton District Hospital Expansion (Infrastructure Award)

As one of Canada’s fastest growing communities, Milton needed to improve and expand its hospital — and fast. Opened in October 2017, the 455,000-sq. foot facility means residents of all ages and abilities can stay close to home and access a wide range of health-care services.

In what could be a case-study in design-build acumen, the project has received as many accolades from the North American health care industry as it has from the Milton community itself for being completed on time, on budget, and on target to the community’s needs: the holy trinity of construction.

When Business Elite Canada interviewed Bill Bailey, Vice President of Redevelopment, Halton Healthcare, about the project, he said “The partnership that came together to build the expansion at Milton District Hospital has set a new standard for hospital construction and design in Ontario. Not only was construction completed on-time and on-budget, construction deficiencies that remained after substantial completion were addressed quickly, enabling the project to reach final completion within seven months of substantial completion. This is an incredible achievement.”

The expansion, designed with community, staff and patient input, was delivered on time and on budget in just 25 months and took place without disrupting essential and lifesaving clinical services at the existing hospital building. The project, which employed 600 workers at its construction peak and created 200 new jobs within the hospital, transferred significant risk to the private sector partner and resulted in projected cost savings of $124.9 million.

“This project is remarkable in how well the community, health-care staff and partners worked together to create an integrated hospital that truly put the needs of Milton residents at its core,” said the awards committee.

“The high degree of collaboration among the various parties and the smooth integration of client feedback contributed to very few changes during construction and a relatively limited number of minor deficiencies at substantial completion. This challenging but very successful brownfield development involving integration with the adjacent operating hospital building demonstrates what can happen when the same firms partner on multiple projects of the same type and become leaders in the field.”